Thursday, 10 January 2013

When baking goes wrong

Here's what you could have won...

Kids, with the best will in the world some days it just isn't meant to happen. I set out yesterday evening with my new super cute teddy cutter to make the biscuits pictured - Fruity Little Teds if you will. The recipe seemed easy enough but as a biscuit amateur, as with muffins, I just didn't realise how easy it was to over-mix the dough. I chucked the Kitchen Aid on at a fair pelt and left it going while I got on with weighing out other things. The effect was to create a super-sticky dough, which even after resting was impossible to control. I Googled the source of the problem and learned that it's because it activates the gluten too much, making it stretchy in the manner of bread dough, exactly what you don't want. I tried cutting out the teddy shapes, but it wasn't to be, the whole lot just coagulated. I do wonder a bit if it was to do with the fact I used bananas, as my rubbery muffins were banana based as well, maybe I need to leave them to the cakes. At this point I was fairly ready to lob the whole lot in the bin and open the vodka, but I decided in the name of learning to turn them into fork biscuits (rolled in a ball and pressed down with a fork). Now one thing I had already learned from past fork biscuits was to dip the fork in hot water between presses to stop it sticking and this saved the day. I realised I had already learned something, and sometimes it is only from our mistakes that we become a better baker. As for the biscuits, they taste more like (undercooked) banana bread!

Maybe they look like teddies from space??

I have decided to go back to Nigella for future biscuit recipes as I just don't seem to be getting on with Miranda Gore Brownes 'Biscuit', these were in the beginners section, oops. Any suggestions for other books or recipes would be greatfully received too!